Arbour Week was again celebrated with tree planting activities taking place at many different schools in Grahamstown.
Thembinkosi Yanka and Thandoxolo Kula from the Millennium Tree Planting Project (MTPP) helped plant trees with the learners at the Seventh Day Adventist School.
Arbour Week was again celebrated with tree planting activities taking place at many different schools in Grahamstown.
Thembinkosi Yanka and Thandoxolo Kula from the Millennium Tree Planting Project (MTPP) helped plant trees with the learners at the Seventh Day Adventist School.
Kula said, “trees are important in general to us and our school. They provide shade, fruit if it a fruit tree, we get timber for furniture and paper that we use in school.
” He went on to give an example.“Do all remember the story of the Mozambican woman who gave birth in a tree during the floods in that country? What if we had no trees?”
The MTPP is working with communities to educate them about the importance of planting indigenous trees as these use less water.
The wild olive or uMnquma is the tree chosen for this year. Its sap is used as an eye lotion, its branches are used for making hand tools, and in some parts of the Western Cape, people make liquor from it. It is also traditionally used for carrying and drying meat after a slaughter and its sticks are carried by initiates and painted black after the ritual to manhood has taken place.
Lamla Gaqa, a student in nature conservation from the Eastern Cape Parks Board, explained why September was chosen to celebrate Arbour Week.
“Trees help importantly where global warming is concerned, trees release oxygen and take in carbon dioxide, thus they provide us with clean air.”
Addressing the Grade 10 learners of Nombulelo Secondary School, principal Mthuthuzeli Koliti said human beings have a huge responsibility to protect nature. "It is a big thing to look after God’s creation," he said.
Makana environmental manager Ndumiso Nongwe said the municipality donated the indigenous trees to the school to encourage biodiversity conservation.
"There’s a big upcoming project with funding of about R20-million for the greening of Grahamstown east," he said.
Three Grade 10 learners made excellent presentations on topics such as deforestation, desertification and traditional healers and afforestation, which is planting trees for commercial purposes on non-forest veld such as grasslands.
Mdingi said she was ecstatic because the school has not planted trees for a couple of years and that from doing so the learners can learn the importance of caring for ,and benefiting from nature.
The National Tree Distribution Programme’s Trees and Food for Africa donated 25 trees to Boy boy Mginywa pre-school in Xolani.
The project was established 19 years ago and has succeded in planting 3.3 million trees in South Africa. The pre-school has made a commitment to plant their own food as the pre-school supervisor Florence Qonda, says that the government has neglected them.
"We will end up selling our vegetables to the fruit and vegetable stores because we have faith and hope."
